caa agenda october 16, 2013 · caa . agenda . october 16, 2013 • approval of the minutes of...

CAA Agenda

October 16, 2013

• Approval of the Minutes of August 28, 2013 CAA meeting

• Enrollment – C. Fey

• UCRC – R. Rockland

o Proposal for degree completion program - J. Redling

• Graduate Council – S. Ziavras

• Teaching, Learning, & Technology – R. Rockland

• Status of Learning Communities – J. Gentul/A. Borganokar

• MapWorks – S. Vandermark

• Sunset of BS in International Business – P. Egbelu o Clarification – Sunset of MS in International Business (see June 2013 CAA minutes)

• Status of CSLA Dean Search – P. Egbelu • Status of NCE Dean Search – U. Gauchat

• Report of the Provost – F. Deek

o Shared Governance

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Archives of all CAA meeting minutes, including UCRC and Grad Council minutes, can be found at http://www.njit.edu/provost/governance/committees/caa/index.php

CAA Minutes

October 16, 2013

In attendance: L. Axe, B. Baltzis, J. Bechtold, B. Biswal, A. Bladikas, C. Borcea, A. Borgaonkar, I. Bracero, C. Brooks, J. Carpinelli, J. Cays, F. Deek, P. Egbelu, S. Eck, E. Farinas, R. Federici, C. Fey, J. Gentul, J. Golowasch, C. Gonzalez, H. Gopal, W. Hubbi, C. Johnson, L. Kaplan, K. Kelly, P. Kenrick, N. Loney, J. Luke, T. Marhaba, M. Maysilles, S. Morgan, J. Redling, R. Rockland, H. Ross, D. Sebastian, R. Sher, A. Sirenko, G. Spak, N. Steffen-Fluhr, P. Teklinski, S. Tricamo, L. Tsybeskov, S. Vandermark, J. Weiss, B. Wu, S. Ziavras Meeting called to order at 10:03 a.m. August 2013 minutes were approved. Overall we did well with the recent ABET visit. All was fine in CCS, and we did exceedingly well in NCE. Of the three different categories reported on (concern, deficiencies, and weaknesses), some were anticipated and some were not. A significant concern is faculty size. All can be addressed, however. Sincere thanks and appreciation was offered to all involved in and associate with the visit. Enrollment – C. Fey As of the 10th day, enrollment was at 10,130. We show a tremendous increase in retention, up 5 points (81% - 86%). The goal is to be at 90% by 2020. The number of non-matriculated students is down by 51. Work needs to be done to look at the trends and factors affecting enrollment. NJIT has applied to be a member of the approved universities allowed to use the common application. The goal is to be using the application for the entering class of 2015. By using the common application we can increase the profile of applicants – not necessarily increase the size of the freshman class. We are also looking to increase the number of transfer, international, and master’s students, and this is where our enrollment will increase. UCRC – R. Rockland Meeting minutes were reviewed from both the September and October 2013 meetings. September 2013 Four new or modified courses or programs:

• Bio 337 • Chem 125A

http://www.njit.edu/provost/governance/committees/caa/index.php

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• New program, potentially entitled “Bachelor in Interdisciplinary Studies”* (BS degree) [*note: program ultimately approved at October CAA meeting as “Bachelor of General Studies”]

o Several questions were raised and J. Redling was to report back at Oct. 2013 meeting

• Establishment of a Dual Degree Program (DDP) in Electrical Engineering (EE) with Istanbul Technical University (ITU), an ABET accredited institution

o Students will receive both the NJIT BS EE (Electrical Engineering) degree and the ITU BS E&CE (Electronics & Communications Engineering) degree after four year combined studies (first & third years at ITU & second & fourth years at NJIT). The two universities will award their degrees independently. NJIT students interested in the program will be offered the option of "study abroad” at ITU compliant with NJIT rules.

o The program is still in the final stages of being worked out. There were questions raised.

o There was no vote taken on this subject.

Consent Agenda items: • Change to Bio 200 - adding a pre-requisite course of College Algebra or equivalent. The

Biology representative will check with the Math department that this would be Math 105 or higher.

• Computer Science wants to institute a requirement of a passing grade of C in all 100 level courses. Computer Science will have to manage this requirement similar to how the Department of Mathematics works that requirement with their majors.

• BME finalized the prerequisite changes for their courses, which include BME 427, 430, 451 and 452.

• There were changes in course descriptions to IE 203, elimination of some courses, and slight changes in the IE course curriculum.

Policies and Procedures:

• A proposed Sunsetting Policy, for both courses and programs, was presented, and approved.

• Regarding proposed changes to the UCRC Guidelines - members will review and comment on these changes and will discuss and vote on these changes at the October meeting.

(See file “UCRC Minutes for September 16 meeting.docx” for full details) October 2013

• Cancel Chem 121 effective Spring 2014; and Chem 122 effective Fall 2014 • A proposed change in prerequisite was as follows:

o From the original prerequisite of “At least 620 on the SAT” to “At least 620 on the math SAT or an A in math 108 or a C in math 139 or a higher level or corequisite math 139 or a higher level or at least 80% mastery of ALEKS (see


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link)”. Approval of the prerequisite was postponed until Chemistry received approval from all the affected deans. CAA note: F. Deek notes that this should not be brought to CAA for further

discussion and needs to be resolved by UCRC • Name change for BIOL 447 and 447HON - from “Cellular and Systems Neuroscience” to

“SYSTEMS NEUROBIOLOGY”. • One new course approved – Biol 337– Collective intelligence in biological systems. • One new program was on the table. After considerable discussion, it was agreed that

this program should be named Bachelor of General Studies. This is a new degree option for non-graduating seniors in “good standing". The objective of this program is to provide students with an alternative means to complete their undergraduate degrees. This program was approved unanimously.

• A number of policy and procedure issues to be covered. A discussion group will be created in Moodle for each of these, and before the November 11th meeting, members will have a chance to comment on each issue.

(See file “UCRC Minutes for October 7 meeting.docx” for full details) Graduate Council – S. Ziavras Meeting minutes were reviewed from both the September and October 2013 meetings. September 2013

• A new course proposal template was created by GSO to include course learning outcomes and assessment. A decision was made for the GC to continue approving courses using the improved template produced by GSO under the condition that the sections on learning outcomes and assessment for GC approved courses be refined further before presentation to CAA.

• A GC sub-committee was created to recommend a new process for course and program proposals in relation to learning outcomes and assessment.

• The new 1-credit dissertation course was created this summer by the Registrar (790A). • 11 PhD students completed their degree requirements in August 2013. • When programs or courses are sunset, their catalog information is archived and their

status changes to inactive. They may be sunset due to low enrollment figures or the unavailability of instructors. Courses and programs which are sunset remain inactive and do not appear in the on-line catalog until possible future reactivation.

• The list of all courses in Banner was emailed by GSO to the GC members to identify (by early November) courses for sunsetting

• Every semester there are many project, thesis and dissertation sections with zero enrolment after the official registration period has ended. They still show up on the Registrar’s web site under “Course Schedules.” The Registrar recommends that the departments/programs be cautious in the creation of these sections. Sections must be created on demand by identifying interested students before the official registration period (November and April).


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• All joint programs involving UMDNJ need to change their dissertation and thesis title pages to list only NJIT and Rutgers.

• The new on-line application procedure for admission will launch this semester and will involve a document imaging system.

• Master of Science in Mathematical and Computational Finance - It has now been confirmed that the related FIN courses will be sunset. Motion was approved unanimously to make the additional required curriculum changes.

• Discussion/vote on following three IS courses be postponed until the October 2013: o New Course IS 661 - “User Experience Design” o New Course IS 664 - “Customer Discovery” o New Course IS 665 - “Data Analytics for Information Systems”

• DMCM 692 - “DMCM Capstone” - Course approval was postponed. • New Course ChE 650 – “Environmental Catalysis Fundamentals & Applications” –

Approved unanimously • Several discussion items were brought to the table. (See file “GC-Minutes-Sept-12-2013.docx” for full details)

October 2013

• Many graduate courses approved in 2011-2013 do not appear in the graduate catalog. The GC Chair has reviewed GC and CAA minutes, and has contacted several departments for the collection of new signatures and resubmission of forms

• New course proposals must include learning outcomes and assessment sections. The assessment section of a GC approved proposal may require revision based on input from members of the NJIT Assessment Committee.

• The deadline for Thesis and Dissertation final submission (on cotton paper) is December 10, 2013

• MS Thesis Committee appointment reports are due within the first 30 days of the semester.

• GSO took the initiative to develop a “Graduation Certification Course Exclusion” form. This form can be submitted only by the academic advisor to GSO, after consulting with GSO. It will not be submitted by the student and the form will not be available for download. The courses to be excluded will not count for graduation certification and degree requirements, and will not contribute to GPA calculation.

o Motion to approve the form passed with small modifications. (see minutes for more detail)

(See file “Draft-GC-Minutes-Oct-10-2013.docx” for full details) Proposed Undergraduate Degree Completion Program – J. Redling “Bachelor of General Studies” – name still to be determined*. Degree is not intended to be a recruitment tool, is not for new students, and is not for students who have left NJIT. [*note: program ultimately approved at October CAA meeting as “Bachelor of General Studies”]

• Program intended for non-graduating seniors in “good standing”.


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• An alternative pathway responding to factors that impact a student’s ability to complete a traditional undergraduate degree: lack of academic progress, financial restraint, or personal hardship.

• Advisor-approved transfer option, adhering to the same academic policies and procedures as traditional NJIT programs.

• First-time students (freshmen and transfers) will not be eligible for admission to the program.

• Though inherently flexible, the program is guided by a clearly defined set of requirements. To gain admittance to the program, students must: • Be currently matriculated at NJIT; • Be in good academic standing in terms of overall GPA; • Have senior standing (91+ credits); • Transfer from a declared major and evidence of attempted progress in that major; • Demonstrate that they have no path toward graduation in current major within the

next academic year. To graduate students must: 1. Attain an overall GPA of 2.0; 2. Complete focus area requirements: minor, concentration, or specialization; 3. Complete a minimum of 33 credits in upper division courses at NJIT; 4. Complete GUR requirements; 5. Complete a minimum of 123 degree credits.

There will need to be advising at the dept. level, the university level, and the Provost’s office. Program will not need to be accredited, and will reside in the department where the student currently is. Diplomas will include the school in which the degree is awarded. Program is neither a B.S. or a B.A. A motion was made to approve “Bachelor of General Studies” as presented. Motion was seconded and passed. (One opposition, zero abstentions) Teaching, Learning, Technology – R. Rockland Meeting minutes were reviewed from both the September and October 2013 meetings. September 2013 Updates were given on:

• Subcommittee on teaching and learning environments at NJIT • Learning Technologies, Moodle 2, Roster-photo update, hidden courses • Bring Your Own Device • Update on the status of dropping students due to lack of payment • Exam Proctoring Initiative • Institute for Instructors of Freshmen • Pearson Embanet • New Initiatives for the TLT Committee for 2013-14


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(See file “TLT Minutes 091013.pdf” for full details) October 2013 Updates were given on:

• Use of e-books during open book exams • Report on planned series of Teaching and learning workshops • The future (or lack of) BYOD • Subcommittee on teaching and Learning environments at NJlT • Learning Technologies Status • Media Repository • Mapworks Workshop • Pearson Embanet

(See file “TLT 100813.docx” for full details) MapWorks - S. Vandermark MapWorks is being used to aid in retention of students. It can provide NJIT with information on student needs/concerns both inside & outside the classroom – goal is to utilize MAP-Works for all NJIT students. Advising Success Center (ASC) will provide assistance to undecided, at-risk, and in-transition students. (See file “MapWorksPresentation for CAA.pptx” for full details) Sunset of BS and MS in International Business – P. Egbelu SoM voted and approved to sunset both programs, and both were approved at UCRC. A motion was made and seconded to approve sunsetting of both the BS and MS in International Business and was passed unanimously. Note: Termination of the MS in IB was brought to CAA in June 2013. SoM has clarified that the intention is to sunset, not terminate. CSLA Dean Search update – P. Egbelu The search committee has drafted an ad and the job has been posted on NJIT website. A timeline for the search has been defined. The NJIT community is encouraged to help in finding good applicants. NCE Dean Search update – U. Gauchat To date there have been 62 applicants, 5 of whom are still being considered, and 2 of whom have yet to be reviewed. There will be two-day visits for each of the finalists which will include a meeting with each of the NCE departments. Updated from the Provost – F. Deek • Shared Governance


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On the agenda for today’s faculty meeting, and will be on the agenda for the November 7th BoT meeting. Thank you to all who have taken part in this process, especially to Richard Sher who played a leading role in shepherding the process and the accompanying documents. • Faculty Hiring We will continue with the hiring plan as originally planned. More detail for this year’s process will be discussed at the next CAA meeting. Meeting adjourned at 11:59am.


Fall 2013 10th Day Enrollment Report

Dr. Charles J. Fey Vice President for Academic Support and Student Affairs

October 16, 2013

Presented to CAA

Fall 2013 Enrollment 10th Day Final Count

Student Category Readmit Continuing Non-Matric

New Graduate

New Transfer

First-Time Freshmen

Totals Difference from Final

Count 2012

Graduate Full Time 4 708 16 669 1397 1

Part time 26 888 203 330 1447 21

Total 30 1596 219 999 2844 22 Undergraduate

Full Time 82 4132 30 513 967 5724 201

Part time 76 552 738 122 74 1562 -36

Total 158 4684 768 635 1041 7286 165 Total Students

188 6280 987 999 635 1041 10,130 187 Fall 2012

252 6025 1038 911 672 1045 9943

Difference Fall 2013

-64 255 -51 88 -37 -4 187

UCRC Minutes from September 16, 2013 Meeting

There were four new or modified courses or programs presented at this meeting.

The first new course reviewed was Bio 337 –Collective intelligence in biological systems. There was much discussion about required prerequisites, and whether, based on the subject matter and the prerequisites, it should be a 300 level course. A decision on this course was postponed until the October meeting, at which time the Biology representative will come back with additional information.

The second new course reviewed was Chem 125A, General Chemistry Laboratory I. This lab course will help students understand the underlying concepts covered in the lecture course, CHEM 125 or CHEM 121. In addition, many medical schools require 2 credits of general chemistry laboratory for application. The course was approved unanimously.

Judith Redling presented a new program, entitled “Bachelor in Interdisciplinary Studies”. This was previously presented at CAA. It was presented at this meeting for informational purposes, and to get comments. By virtue of the name, it is not a BS or a BA degree. The questions/comments that were raised include:

1. What would be the limits on which courses would be eliminated from GPA at graduation, since there would be a question as to what courses are “outside the major”.

2. Several UCRC members had questions as to whether the word interdisciplinary is appropriate (and could prevent another interdisciplinary program). There are programs such as General Studies, which would not imply interdisciplinary studies.

3. There was question on whether this degree should be awarded by college rather than the university, or by an interdisciplinary area.

Judy will review these comments, and come back to UCRC

A fourth item was to establish a Dual Degree Program (DDP) in Electrical Engineering (EE) with Istanbul Technical University (ITU), an ABET accredited institution. Students will receive both the NJIT BS EE (Electrical Engineering) degree and the ITU BS E&CE (Electronics & Communications Engineering) degree after four year combined studies (first & third years at ITU & second & fourth years at NJIT). The two universities will award their degrees independently. NJIT students interested in the program will be offered the option of "study abroad” at ITU compliant with NJIT rules. Most of the required ECE courses have their equivalents at ITU and they could be presently transferred to NJIT following current course transfer procedure. There were three NJIT courses that ITU is planning to develop, and if a course required in the program is not offered at ITU, participating students will take it at NJIT. The BS-EE degree will be granted by NJIT to students who satisfy all requirements of our current program.

The program is still in the final stages of being worked out, and two questions were raised:

1. Since the students will be doing their second year and fourth year at NJIT, how are we going to calculate GPA.

2. We have a minimum upper division course requirement for graduation. If students are not taking their junior year at NJIT, how do we deal with that requirement?

There was no vote taken on this subject.

Consent Agenda:

Biology presented a change to Bio 200 - adding a pre-requisite course of College Algebra or equivalent. The Biology representative will check with the Math department that this would be Math 105 or higher.

Last semester, Computer Science wanted to institute a requirement of a passing grade of C in all 100 level courses. There was a concern for this regarding non-major (GUR requirements), and further discussion was postponed to this meeting. Computer Science will have to manage this requirement similar to how the Department of Mathematics works that requirement with their majors.

Last semester, BME presented a series of changes in prerequisites and course number changes. This was postponed until this meeting, and they eliminated the course number changes and only finalized the prerequisite changes for their courses, which include BME 427, 430, 451 and 452.

There were changes in course descriptions to IE 203, elimination of some courses, and slight changes in the IE course curriculum.

Policies and Procedures

There was a brief comment at the beginning of the meeting regarding proposed changes to the UCRC Guidelines, which would reflect current practices. Members will review and comment on these changes prior to the meeting, and we will discuss and vote of these changes at the October meeting.

A proposed Sunsetting Policy, for both courses and programs, was presented, and approved.

Items that will be reviewed this semester will include;

1. Should Minors strictly require all upper division courses ( i.e for bio and a few other programs) – this was a carryover from last year (not resolved).

2. Catalog year definition 3. Question on 4.0 GPA acknowledgment at graduation - how many credits (right now, 34

will be sufficient) 4. Discussion on definition of satisfactory academic progress. 5. Question on 3xx and 4xx courses without any prerequisites

6. How are different programs calculating their program GPA (a requirement of 2.0 is listed in the catalog) and whether this should be department based or university based.

UCRC Minutes for October 7, 2013 meeting The minutes for the September 16 meeting were approved. All actions resulting from that meeting were not completed, since UCRC did not report to CAA in September. There were some announcements in the Consent agenda, one prerequisite change and one name change: Announcements: To cancel Chem 121 effective Spring 2014 and Chem 122 effective Fall 2014 The proposed change in the prerequisite was as follows: From the original prerequisite of “At least 620 on the SAT” to “At least 620 on the math SAT or an A in math 108 or a C in math 139 or a higher level or corequisite math 139 or a higher level or at least 80% mastery of ALEKS (see link)”. There was significant discussion on this proposed prerequisite. Since this course would affect multiple colleges, approval of the prerequisite was postponed until Chemistry received approval from all the affected deans. The name change was for BIOL 447 and 447HON - from “Cellular and Systems Neuroscience” to “SYSTEMS NEUROBIOLOGY”.

There was one new course approved – Biol 337– Collective intelligence in biological systems. This course will provide an overview of the fundamental principles underlying the organization of human and animal societies. This was held over from the September meeting, pending some changes, which were done. There was one abstention.

There was one new program, the Bachelor of Individualized Study. After considerable discussion, it was agreed that this program should be named Bachelor of General Studies. This is a new degree option for non-graduating seniors in “good standing". The objective of the Bachelor of Individualized Studies program is to provide students with an alternative means to complete their undergraduate degrees. This program was approved unanimously.

There are a number of policy and procedure issues which we have not covered. A discussion group will be created in Moodle for each of these, and before the November 11th meeting, members will have a chance to comment on each issue. The issues UCRC will be taking up include:

• Revisit additional changes for Sunsetting. The original policy was approved in September, but on further review, there are changes and additions that need to be made. These will be reviewed and voted on at the November meeting.

• Review of proposed UCRC Guideline changes • Should Minors strictly require all upper division courses ( i.e for bio and a few other

programs) – this was a carryover from last year (not resolved).

• Catalog year definition • Question on 4.0 GPA acknowledgment at graduation - how many credits (right now, 34

will be sufficient) • How are different programs calculating their program GPA (a requirement of 2.0 is listed

in the catalog) and whether this should be department based or university based. • Discussion on definition of satisfactory academic progress.

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GRADUATE COUNCIL MINUTES

September 12, 2013

Attendance: T. Arinzeh, M. Bieber, L. Cummings, S. Eck, P. Fields, C. Gonzalez-Lenahan, Z. Ji, K. Krumweide, B. Longo, N. Loney, M. Maysilles, D. Misra, F. Nadim, B. Penczak, N.M. Ravindra, M. Schneider, C. Venanzi, and S. Ziavras (Chair).

Excused: H. Wang.

1. Approval of May 9, 2013 GC meeting minutes. The minutes were approved during the summer via e-mail.

2. Announcements - GSO staff. - Marino Xanthos Memorial Lecture on November 20th at 2:30PM.

Additional information will be provided at a later date.

- A new course proposal template was created by GSO to include course learning outcomes and assessment. It was emailed to the GC members in early September. A lengthy discussion ensued on the differences in relevant policies between ABET accreditation for engineering programs vs. other accreditation boards for other disciplines. A decision was made for the GC to continue approving courses using the improved template produced by GSO under the condition that the sections on learning outcomes and assessment for GC approved courses be refined further before presentation to CAA. This refinement will be based on help provided by members of the NJIT Assessment Committee (the list of members with their college affiliations was emailed to the GC members earlier in September).

- A GC sub-committee was created to recommend a new process for course and

program proposals in relation to learning outcomes and assessment. The sub-committee members are: N. Loney (Chair), NCE; R. Ravindra, CSLA; M. Schneider, SoM; M. Bieber, CCS; and K. Krumweide, CoAD (they may ask other faculty members from their colleges/schools to represent them during sub-committee meetings).

- 1-credit dissertation course (790A). The new 1-credit dissertation course was created this summer by the Registrar. Several students and their advisors were contacted by GSO during the summer and early September in order to change 3-credit registrations to 1-credit registrations (for PhD students who had completed the required number of dissertation credits in their program).

- August 2013 PhD graduates. 11 PhD students completed their degree requirements in August 2013. It compares favorably with the 10 PhD students who graduated in August 2012.

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- Program and course sunsetting. When programs or courses are sunset, their catalog information is archived and their status changes to inactive. They may be sunset due to low enrollment figures or the unavailability of instructors. Courses and programs which are sunset remain inactive and do not appear in the on-line catalog until possible future reactivation. The list of all courses available in Banner was emailed by GSO to the GC members. They were asked to consult with their departments/programs in order to identify courses for sunsetting and report back to the GC. The Provost’s Office will supervise the sunsetting procedure.

- Project, thesis and dissertation courses.

Every semester there are many project, thesis and dissertation sections with zero enrolment after the official registration period has ended. They still show up on the Registrar’s web site under “Course Schedules.” The Registrar recommends that the departments/programs be cautious in the creation of these sections. Sections must be created on demand by identifying interested students before the official registration period (November and April).

- Thesis and dissertation cover page changes for joint programs due to the Rutgers-UMDNJ merger. All joint programs involving UMDNJ need to change their dissertation and thesis title pages to list only NJIT and Rutgers.

- Others. The GSA Thesis and dissertation workshop will occur on September 25th.

3. Recruitment, Admission and Enrollment Reports –- S. Eck.

NJIT reached its target of 10,000 enrolled students in Fall 2013. The new on-line application procedure for admission will launch this semester and will involve a document imaging system. With the new procedure, the Associate Provost for Graduate Studies will have access to the on-line PhD applications of students recommended for admission.

4. New course/program proposals and changes. • Finalize curriculum changes, Master of Science in Mathematical and

Computational Finance– A. Pole, L. Cummings Some courses for this program were approved by the GC in April and May 2011. They are MATH 604, MATH 606, MATH 607 and MATH 609. The courses were approved under the condition that the equivalent FIN courses be deleted. It has now been confirmed that these FIN courses will be sunset. However, the GC did not vote in 2011 on the proposed curriculum changes for this program. The requested curriculum changes in the original proposal were: MATH 604 will replace FIN 642, MATH 606 will replace FIN 643, MATH 607 will replace FIN 644, and MATH 609 will replace the Project requirement. Motion was approved unanimously to make the required curriculum changes in the Master of Science in Mathematical and Computational Finance program.

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• Dr. Bieber requested that approval for the following three IS courses be postponed

until the October 2013 GC meeting primarily due to CCS changes in administration. Also, more input is needed to enhance the learning outcomes and assessment sections of the three course proposals. However, the course proposals were discussed at the GC meeting in order to provide feedback before the proposals are brought back for a vote in October 2013. Several recommendations were made.

o New Course IS 661 - “User Experience Design” o New Course IS 664 - “Customer Discovery” o New Course IS 665 - “Data Analytics for Information Systems”

• New Course DMCM 692 - “DMCM Capstone”

Course approval was postponed. The course proposal, however, was discussed for GC feedback. This course will be offered by the interdisciplinary DMCM program. CAA approval for this program is pending. Instructors of the course will rotate between relevant departments. Language on ethical principles must be updated.

• New Course ChE 650 – “Environmental Catalysis Fundamentals & Applications” – N. Loney. This is a popular course that has been offered in the past by an adjunct as a Special Topics course. Many students take this course. The syllabus must be changed to show that the final exam will be held in the 15th week of the semester. The course was approved unanimously under the condition that members of the NJIT Assessment Committee be consulted to improve the learning outcomes and assessment sections.

5. Issues for discussion - GSO staff. - Seminar requirement for graduation certification. Current attendance requirements sometimes do not allow students to be certified for graduation even though they meet all other degree requirements. GC members will discuss the graduate seminar requirement for Master’s students within their respective departments/programs. The GC will revisit this issue at the next GC meeting. - Discussion Document: Use of Degree and Major Terminology in the Curriculum. A draft document provided by David Ullman was discussed. There are currently several designations for specialization in graduate programs such as concentration, specialization, option and track. We need consistency in this terminology across NJIT. DegreeWorks has given light to this problem. Consistent terminology across departments and programs will simplify the catalog, and help students understand their degree options. The draft document defines the concentration and specialization terms, and discusses various options (e.g., printing concentrations on the formal diploma). - Discussion Document: Catalog Year in University Catalog and Required Field in Student Records. This draft document was provided by David Ullman. According to the draft, academic advisors will have the option in DegreeWorks to select the catalog year for monitoring

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a student’s record. The catalog is archived only once a year, in the beginning of the academic year. Although changes are normally made to the on-line catalog during the academic year for newly approved courses and programs, they will take effect in the catalog for the following year. - Graduate course exclusion policy. GSO staff will meet with the Admissions, Registrar, International Student and Financial Aid offices to discuss this topic before presenting the details to the GC.

Meeting adjourned at noon.

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GRADUATE COUNCIL MEETING

October 10, 2013

Attendance: T. Arinzeh, M. Bieber, L. Cummings, S. Eck, C. Gonzalez-Lenahan, K. Krumweide, N. Loney, M. Maysilles, D. Misra, B. Penczak, N.M. Ravindra, M. Schneider, C. Venanzi, H. Wang, M. Wecharatana and S. Ziavras (Chair).

Excused: F. Nadim, B. Longo and Z. Ji.

1. September 12, 2013 GC meeting minutes approved.

2. Announcements - GSO staff - Remembrance event for Dr. Marino Xanthos on Wednesday, November 20th at 2:30 PM in the Weston Hall Gallery. - A review of graduate courses approved by the GC and CAA in AY12-13 was conducted by the GC Chair. Many approved courses do not appear in the graduate catalog and the required paperwork with signatures for these new courses cannot be found, so the GC Chair has asked several departments to resubmit the forms with new signatures. The Registrar is contacted for catalog updates as soon as the signed forms arrive in GSO. The same problem has also occurred with some program updates. GC members were asked to check the graduate catalog on the Registrar’s web site and report to the Chair on any formerly approved courses they find missing. - As per a GC recommendation in September, new course proposals must include learning outcomes and assessment sections. The assessment section of a GC approved proposal may require revision based on input from members of the NJIT Assessment Committee. Approved courses will be presented to CAA after the assessment section has been revised. The proposal for ChE 650 (Environmental Catalysis Fundamentals & Applications) that was approved by the GC in September has been revised accordingly. Therefore, ChE 650 will be presented to CAA on October 16, 2013. - A BS/MS general session is scheduled for October 16, 2013 in Kupfrian Hall Room 210. All juniors and seniors with cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better are welcome. Admissions has sent invitations by e-mail to qualified students. - The EWNJ (Executive Women of NJ) Awards ceremony this evening will recognize NJIT PhD student Megan Litwhiler (Biology). She has been selected to receive a $5K graduate fellowship. - The deadline for Thesis and Dissertation final submission (post defense) on cotton paper is December 10, 2013.

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- MS Thesis Committee appointment reports are due within the first 30 days of the semester. GC members were asked to follow up with thesis advisors in their respective departments to ensure that reports have been forwarded.

3. Recruitment, Admission and Enrollment Reports – S. Eck - 2014 Spring graduate applications are up by about 150; these applications are primarily at the MS degree level. - The document imaging project for processing applications has been completed. Training will begin in late October 2013. The program is expected to be up and running by November 2013.

4. Report by the subcommittee on course learning outcomes and assessment for new course proposals. N. Loney (Chair), NCE; M. Bieber, CCS; K. Krumweide, CoAD; R. Ravindra, CSLA; M. Schneider, SoM Several concerns were voiced by subcommittee members about the difficulty of finding common ground across disciplines. M. Schneider gave the subcommittee the SoM template. It has been determined that the following items must be included in course proposals: a data collection mechanism, performance indicators for analysis, and departmental processes for reviewing data. The subcommittee will produce a document for discussion in November. GSO will pass the document to the departments for comments.

5. New course/program proposals and changes. Three IS course proposals were tabled until the November meeting since the CCS Dean was not available to sign the proposals due to travel. • New Course IS 661 - “User Experience Design” • New Course IS 664 - “Customer Discovery” • New Course IS 665 - “Data Analytics for Information Systems”

6. Issues for discussion and possible vote - GSO staff

- Graduation certification course exclusion form. GSO took the initiative to develop a “Graduation Certification Course Exclusion” form since there has been a lot of discussion of its need. The Admissions, Registrar, Financial Aid and International Student offices were consulted before the form was presented to the GC. This form can be submitted only by the academic advisor to GSO, after consulting with GSO. It will not be submitted by the student and the form will not be available for download. The courses to be excluded will not count for graduation certification and degree requirements, and will not contribute to GPA calculation. This form will be used for such cases as:

3

• A student transfers to another NJIT graduate program. This form will be submitted by the academic advisor (new program) only after the student has been officially admitted to the new program.

• A student is readmitted after many years of absence and some of the courses that the student took in the past are not part of the current curriculum.

• A student took a course that does not really apply to the program of study. • A student wants to repeat a course but the course cannot be offered due to

the lack of an instructor. • The academic advisor selects a different catalog year in Degree Works

with student agreement. Some courses taken earlier must be excluded. • A part-time student receives a “U” grade in a seminar course (e.g., 791).

However, part-time students do not need to take the seminar course.

Motion to approve the form passed with small modifications. - Seminar attendance requirement for graduation certification. Departments were advised to always make sure that Master’s students certified for graduation do not have a “U” grade in a seminar course. Otherwise, the departments should change their policy regarding the seminar requirement. - Course sunsetting (input from departments/programs). GC members were reminded that they must present to the GC the list of graduate courses to be sunset. The deadline is the beginning of November.

TLT Committee Meeting 9/10/13 Minutes DRAFT

1. Approval of the minutes of the May 14th TLT meeting – All in favor

2. Subcommittee on teaching and learning environments at NJIT – J. Bonchi

Architecture tested the new plasmas that is being considered for the advanced tech classrooms.

Honors College will have these plasmas installed.

The big picture is set for C.K.B. However, the details will be included in the plan later due to

constantly updating technologies. C.K.B. will have general classrooms as well as breakout Spaces.

Questions and Feedback:

How will the scheduling work? J. Bonchi explained that in the past, he and the registrar tried to

accommodate as best as they can.

Training on how to make effective use of the rooms would be helpful. B. Reynolds and J. Bonchi

replied that the TLT workshops will try to address this through presenting best practices.

Can we get access to the C.K.B. proposal that the governor had made reference to. P. Deess

mentioned that for some reason the document couldn’t be accessed through the right channels but it

will be made available internally. D. Ullman will post it on Banner.

What is the general plan? D. Ullman summarized that Phase 1 Tech plan covers the 3rd

and the 4th

floor of C.K.B. which will be implemented in Fall 2014. In the next phase, in the year of 2015, an

emporium style spaces will be constructed as well as collaborative spaces at the lower level. Also

museum type of area will be constructed to serve as a discovery-type space. New entrance will be in

place.

J. Lipuma asked if HDMI connectors will soon become available in the classrooms. J. Bonchi

mentioned that it’ll still take some time for that to be made available. However, there are VGA to

HDMI converter available for sign out.

Wireless has improved. Teaching areas have better wireless now. Tiernan is still in progress.

3. Learning Technologies, Moodle 2, Roster-photo update, hidden courses – Haggerty, Ullman


Our Moodle hosting vendor, Moodlerooms was bought out by Blackboard. We’re looking into

options other options which are 1) self-hosted, 2) Lamda and 3) Remote Learner. The reason is that

the vendors are increasingly not accommodating due to conflict with Blackboard products. A recent

case is with Webex integration. Moodlerooms won’t support the plugin due to Blackboard’s own

video conferencing tool.

R. Sweeney emphasized that this decision will have broad impact on over 85% of the faculty and

should consider factors beyond on small issues. B. Haggerty also agreed and mentioned that ITMS

looks out for the interest of the faculty and students, and whenever a contract is made with a

company, we need to ensure that there are alternative solutions in cases the company gets bought out,

deteriorates or goes out of business.

D. Ullman mentioned that the Student photos on rosters require larger scale update of the entire

security management system so it would take some time.

4. Status report by the BYOD subcommittee – R. Arms

R. Arms mentioned that teacher friendly and student friendly BYOD will be created at NJIT. B.

Reynolds mentioned that BYOD is one of the most hot topics dicussed at Educause, and other

Educational Technology entities.

5. Update on the status of dropping students due to lack of payment – Haggerty

B. Haggerty mentioned that Dave Ullman’s team worked hard with Bursar and Registrar in

coordinating the student drop that would be least disruptive. There are currently less than 200 non-

payment students which is a lot better than 289 cancelled last semester. 500 students were dropped

before September 3rd.

Questions and feedback:

Was the message clear enough? R. Rockland mentioned that part of it was made ambiguous and it

was left to the instructors to decide whether to let the dropped students in the class or not.


6. Exam Proctoring Initiative – Haggerty, Spak

G. Spak explained the Exam proctoring initiative. The Pearson Masters programs will use blue book

exams for Fall and next year Spring. Currently, the traditional NJIT students are mixed in with

Embanet students to fill the courses. There is also web proctoring pilot in progress.


How does It work? G. Spak mentioned that the proctoring will be done in partnership with Thomas

Edison College who have long history of bluebook proctoring. Thomas Edison recently stopped

bluebook proctoring and is now working with a virtual proctor called Proctor U. This Thursday, there

will be a demo with Calculus instructors. For Fall, there will be no cost for students. Thomas Edison

was able to find free service proctors for 95% of its students.

Even face-to-face course proctoring is difficult. Is the virtual service any more effective? G. Spak

mentioned that since working with Proctor U., Thomas Edison had 10,000 proctored exams. They

reported fewer cheating than face to face courses.

Once the students complete the bluebook exam, what happens? G. Spak explained the process.

Thomas Edison scans and sends U.S. Mail to proctored locations. Mails it back to Thomas Edison

Staff of 10 will make pdfs of the exam and will store it in Google Drive for faculty to look at. Then

NJIT faculty can review and enter grades. The printed copies will also be sent to the faculty. Proctor

notifies within 24 hours on suspicious activities for faculty and NJIT to take steps.

B. Haggerty added that there’s an increasing requests for proctored exams for online courses. This

initiative will benefit not only Embanet courses but all NJIT courses. School of Management asked

for a departmental solution and one faculty did a pilot last semester with a different company. Some

drawbacks were found and another pilot with Proctor U will be implemented this Fall with the same

instructor.


7. Institute for Instructors of Freshmen – Haggerty

Freshman Institute took place on Aug, 26th. with over 100 instructors and advisors that work with

Freshmen. Panel discussion with Students was followed by Ron’s workshop on teaching millennial

students.


Institute feedback included comments such as ‘the overall day was too long’ but was overall positive.

Workshop on Plagiarism, prevention and next steps will be made into a video tutorial which will be

made available to all instructors.

R. Sweeney mentioned that inviting the panel back for next semester would provide useful

information as to how their perceptions have changed and how we can better accommodate them for

increased engagement and retention. The faculty side of the story may also provide deeper insight.

8. Pearson Embanet update – Spak

G. Spak gave an overview of the Embanet enrollment. Including Civil and the three degrees, 178

students Embanet students have enrolled taking average of 1.5-2 courses.

9. New Initiatives for the TLT Committee for 2013-14

R. Rockland mentioned that a new set of workshops will be created. One idea in design is to create

Provost teaching workshop over 3-semester period which can eventually be turned into an online

seminar. The workshops will be practical and less theoretical.

R. Sweeney mentioned that upper class students’ panel discussion would also be informative for us

and the incoming Freshmen. B. Reynolds suggested that R. Sweeney and Blake work as a

Subcommittee to put this together as done for the Freshmen institute.


The students panel video is available from the TLT website. No authentication required to watch the

video. Sweeney commented that there was a large disparity in how many hours are expected for

studying from the students side and the instructors’ side.

A. Lefkovitz suggested that the transfer students may be able to talk about their experience comparing

the different schools they were in and provide perspective on what NJIT is doing well and what needs

to be improved. G. Spak suggested that the recruitment staff may also be consulted in shaping the

questions.

NJIT has joined Sloan-C consortium and there are about 50 slots available for workshops they offer.

Send email to [email protected].

The next TLT meeting is on October 8, 2013.

mailto:[email protected]


1. Approval of the minutes of Sept. 10th TLT –all in favor of approval 2. Use of e-books during open book exams

Ron Rockland asked the participants if having an ebook advantageous for open book exams. Following points were mentioned: • We’ll be seeing more of these as ebooks are cheaper. • James Lipuma mentioned that eBooks are searchable so the tests should be designed in

such a way that search and find is used for spotting answers. • Richard Sweeney brought up more questions about what the tests should look like. • Andrew Klobucar mentioned that the use of information technology makes us better

assemblers of information which is a valid skill. The tests need redesigning. • Students Freshmen and Sophomore may need different exams from grad Students • Students’ choice of textbook medium should be respected but fairness needs to be

considered. • Andrew Klobucar mentioned that eBooks not only change the exam practices but it also

changes reading culture. For example, Kindle lets you know how many readers highlighted a passage which brings the reader’s attention to those lines that received a lot of highlights.

3. Report on planned series of Teaching and learning workshops

Professional development workshops on effective teaching strategies will be held for adjuncts, new faculty, Ph. D students which could eventually be turned into online workshops. The following workshops are set for following dates:

• Oct. 30th – Learning Centered Teaching • Nov. 18th – Effective Syllabus • Dec. 12th– Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Evaluation

Ron Rockland will talk to chairs in promoting these workshops. They will interactive and hands on. Gale Spak suggested that Sloan-C online seminars could be used as one of the professional development resource which also gives recognized certificates.

4. The future (or lack of) BYOD Robert Arms mentioned that the CKB classrooms are updated based on CAB. Students are still required to have computers and more information will come on BYOD. Following points were mentioned:

• One of the faculty brought up an issue. 2/3 of her biology class students are Rutgers students and the tech requirements, tech support are incongruent. How does the Rutgers requirement align with NJIT’s?

• Blake Haggerty mentioned that the laptop loaner program should be looked into with increasing demand on computer usage and lack of lab spaces.

• Richard Sweeney mentioned that although it can’t be a replacement for laptops, library loans out iPads which are very popular.

• Klobucar- Some students don’t take good care of their laptops and often times becomes the 21st C. “dog ate my homework” excuse.


• Math students were crammed into PC mall due to ALEKS based curriculum. This created a higher pressure to require and support BYOD at the college level. Creating a tech requirement enables faculty to actively incorporate those required resources into their teaching practices. However, often times it’s the faculty pioneering new ideas that create a demand for the requirements to be in place.

• Gale Spak mentioned that 2 versions of the curriculum may help with the transition. Same learning objectives may be achieved with different mode of learning.

5. Subcommittee on teaching and Learning environments at NJlT- J. Bonchi

• It’s been challenging scheduling a meeting with the Honors College-architect and faculty.

• Learning Community was an alpha model to the Honors College classrooms. We will get feedback from students soon.

• It’s an opportunity to see the plan come together – powers on the floor, flexible furniture, whiteboards along all walls, interactive displays, etc.

• Gale Spak suggested that the next TLT may be held in one of these rooms.

6. Learning Technologies Status – Blake Haggerty Photo IDs on roster – The parking security software has been upgraded this month. Haresh will meet with the parking to incorporate this into the Banner system.

Moodle 2 Log in Issues – Moodle 2 has been having login issues due to Shibboleth problems. Shibboleth passes on tokens to authenticate users on various systems including Mapworks, Moodle and Drupal. The upgrade of Shibboleth was delayed several times and Haresh will fix this by end of October.

We will be looking into other options of Moodle hosting and other LMS in case we need to bail.

7. Media Repository – Bill Duelly iTunes u and Kaltura – NJIT was the first school to be on iTunes U from the Northeast region back in 2000. It was a great place to securely store large videos at a reasonable price. However, it didn’t fit our needs over time. It’s not integrated with Moodle and doesn’t support streaming so students will need to download it and watch it on iTunes. Also, iTunes U is moving in a direction of becoming an eTextbook repository. So Bill Duelly looked into other video management systems and found Kaltura. Kaltura makes it easy to manage videos, control access, integrate with Moodle and stream videos on all types of gadgets. This system may be implemented with the iGeneration fund.

8. Mapworks Workshop –Blake Haggerty Mapworks Workshop is one of the first Provost Teaching and Learning series workshops. Grace and Sarah led the workshop which covered what the system is and how to use it.

9. Pearson Embanet Update-Gale Spak


This Fall, there are 98 students enrolled in the four Embanet-NJIT degrees. Each student takes about 1.5 classes. MBA students are mostly NJIT alumni. Two degrees are working with Thomas Edison College in using their resources and expertise in overseeing bluebook testing. NJIT is picking up the cost. One degree is exploring web-based proctoring. There will take a place for a conversation among the faculty running the courses and the people involved in the development of the courses to make improvements in our work with Embanet. Four courses in E.E., three in MBA and two in CS are developed for next Spring. The courses offered in Fall will also be offered in Spring. Blake Haggerty and Richard Sweeney will later firm up the plans for the upper freshmen and transfer student focus group for late Spring.

The next TLT meeting is on November 12th.

Proposal for an

Undergraduate Degree Completion

Program

Presentation to CAA

October 16, 2013

1

Rationale

Senior retention and graduation rates at NJIT compel the

creation of a degree completion program:

• 119 seniors did not graduate and were not retained from

2011 to 2012) AND had GPAs above 2.0;

• 77 currently enrolled students have senior+ status and are

in good standing but have not graduated.

2

NJIT Degree Completion Program

• Undergraduate degree option for non-graduating seniors in

“good standing”;

• An alternative pathway responding to factors that impact a

student’s ability to complete a traditional undergraduate

degree: lack of academic progress, financial restraint, or

personal hardship;

• Advisor-approved transfer option, adhering to the same

academic policies and procedures as traditional NJIT

programs.

Objectives

1. To provide a viable alternative to students who cannot fulfill all

major requirements for any existing undergraduate degree at

NJIT;

2. To provide undergraduates with credentials (Bachelor’s

degree) that will enhance employment opportunities;

3. To provide faculty with an advising option for students who,

despite senior+ standing, are unable to complete all degree

requirements in their current major within 6 years.

4

Guidelines

• First-time students (freshmen and transfers) will not be eligible

for admission to the program.

• The practice of advising undergraduates, upon admission or

early in their undergraduate career, into traditional degree

programs appropriate to skills sets and interests will not be

impacted.

• Though inherently flexible, the program is guided by a clearly

defined set of requirements.

5

Outcomes

• Increase in graduation rates;

• Increase in retention of seniors;

• Improvement in student satisfaction.

6

Degree Completion Programs

Bachelor of General Studies programs:

(examples in top 100 US News ranking)

Brigham Young University

Drexel University

Indiana University

Missouri Western State University

University of Connecticut

University of Massachusetts-Amherst

NJ Degree Completion Programs

• Ramapo College: Accelerated Bachelor of Arts in

Social Sciences

• Rutgers University, Camden: Bachelor of Arts in

Liberal Studies

• Rowan University: Bachelor of General Studies

Advising

• Referrals from department to Office of the Provost;

• Joint advisement: home department and the Advising

Success Center;

• Joint approval of degree completion plan;

• Department certifies “focus area” requirements;

9

Degree Requirements

To gain admittance to the program, students must:

• Be currently matriculated at NJIT;

• Be in good academic standing in terms of overall GPA;

• Have senior standing (91+ credits);

• Transfer from a declared major and evidence of attempted

progress in that major;

• Demonstrate that they have no path toward graduation in

current major within the next academic year.

10

Graduation Requirements

To graduate students must:

1. Attain an overall GPA of 2.0;

2. Complete focus area requirements:

minor, concentration, or specialization;

3. Complete a minimum of 33 credits in upper division courses

at NJIT;

4. Complete GUR requirements;

5. Complete a minimum of 123 degree credits*.

*Degree credits do not include "course exclusions" (courses with similar content cannot be counted twice, i.e. Phys 105 and Phys 111), Hum 099, Math 098, Math 099, and at the discretion of the home academic advisor, other developmental math or chemistry courses.

11

Next Steps:

Implementation for students not graduating within

10 yrs of matriculation;

Develop more effective strategies to assess academic

progress;

Revise Academic Standing Policies?

Proposed titles:

• Bachelor of Individualized Studies

• Bachelor of General Studies

NJIT MAP-WORKS RETENTION TOOL Sarah Vandermark

Director

Advising Success Center

Overview

What is MAP-Works Advising Success Center Importance of MAP-Works

How MAP-Works can provide NJIT with information on students needs/concerns both inside & outside the classroom – goal is to utilize MAP-Works for all NJIT students

Success of MAP-Works depends on the communication within MAP-Works

Involvement – college wide

Advising Success Center (ASC)

Our center will be providing assistance for the following students Undecided At-Risk (Red, Yellow) In transition (changing majors)

Campus Coordinators for MAP-Works Oversee all students – Referrals, Notes, Meeting with

students

How do we know who is At-Risk?

Indicators – Green, Yellow, Red Depends on how they answer the Fall Transition

Survey Academics, Behaviors & Activities, Socio-Emotional,

Financial Means, Performance & Expectations

Green – Acclimated & adjusting well to NJIT Yellow – Some Risk Indicators Red – Intent to Leave

GREEN -Successfully transitioning to NJIT - Made great connections

YELLOW - Some risk - Easier to

help than someone who has already decided to leave NJIT.

- Can impact Retention

RED & DOUBLE RED - Apply what is

going well - Find strengths

& connections

2nd Indicators of Green, Yellow, Red

Common/Mid-Term Exams

Green student may become yellow/red Yellow may be green Etc.

Retention

Communication with students can be more efficient Survey, grades, absences & note taking

Creates conversations across departments Begin to break down silos

Awareness will create: Student Retention, Persistence & Satisfaction

Any Questions?

Thank you for being a part of this initiative

Advising Success Center Fenster 420 973-596-5598 [email protected] Sarah Vandermark Grace Lopez Director Associate Director

caa agenda october 16, 2013 · caa . agenda . october 16, 2013 • approval of the minutes of...

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